
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, July 13, 1993                   TAG: 9307130348
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A-4   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

IS EXPLORE DISTORTING THE PICTURE?

MAGICIANS at Explore Park can make lots of money disappear without a trace, although millions of state funds went for the land. And after eight years, two buildings are up from private donations.

Rusty Lucas' July 7 letter to the editor ("Don't knock Explore until you've tried it") shows that they still fool some. He did ask, though, if it is really a good idea. If he thinks it's educational, he should check for facts.

How many misconceptions are they teaching thousands of schoolchildren? Last year, they taught that hog-scrapers were used to remove the hide, but they are used to remove only the hair, leaving the hide smooth and white. The impression was made that churning butter takes most of a day. It takes about 30 minutes, depending on the temperature.

And don't they know that wolves belong to the dog family, have a homing instinct and may return to where they were raised? They can expect this if they ever raise any. DNA tests have proved that the so-called Red wolf is identical to the coyote, and is not an endangered species. But they continue to make this false claim. Livestock farmers object to promoting an increase in the population of wolves, coyotes or panthers.

Building an environmental center at Explore would endanger the ozone layer further. Emissions from cars would pollute the air. We have civic centers where environmentalists can meet. Pollution and acid rain do kill forests.

Explore's colorful brochure is very deceptive and contains fake pictures, such as the wolf feeding her cubs and the distorted color of the farmhouse. MABEL FRANCE FERRUM

by CNB